U.S. NAVY 

S of the W( 




PARIS 



^6«^D1TTV BOX GUIDE BOOK SERIES 



BUREAU OF NiWIGATION 
NAVY DEPARTMENT 




PARIS, FRANCE 



Published by 
BUREAU OF NAVIGATION C^^^^I^U' 



under authority of the 
Secretary of the Navy 




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

"ECEIVED 

IV1AY7-1921 

DOCUMENTS U v.SION 



ti^ 



rp 



^ 







CLOSE-UP OF NAPOLEON'S TOMB 



Contents 



Introduction ---------------11 

Early Days in Paris ------------- 13 

The French Revolution -------------15 

"Madame Guillotine" ------- 16 

Place du Carrousel -- .--.-18 

A Treasure House ----- - 20 

The Belfry Tower ------.------22 

Tomb of Napoleon - .-.-- 27 

The Unknown Dead ----- 28 

Old Bridges and New - 29 

An Arch of Triumph .----.-------31 

The Latin Quarter -------- 33 

A Gallery of Art - - - - 36 

The Eiffel Tower 39 

A Famous Chateau -------------40 

Theaters and Hotels ---..------- 41 

Money and Postage -------- 43 

On the Battlefields - - 44 

Rheims and Verdun ---.---------45 

Other Trips - 46 



Seven 



Foreword 




INCE warships flying the American flag have made the world 
of waters their cruising grounds and since they carry with 
them scores of thousands of seagoing Americans, the per- 
sonal interest of the Nation in ports, far and near, is ever 
increasing in recent years. 

In order to furnish valuable information to officers and 
enlisted men of the Navy who visit these ports, the Bureau 
of Navigation is preparing individual guidebooks on the 
principal ports of the world. 

Although every effort has been made to include accurate informa- 
tion on the most important subjects connected with this port, it is realized 
that some important facts may have been omitted and that certain 
details may be inaccurate. Any information concerning omissions or 
inaccuracies addressed to Guidebook Editor, Bureau of Navigation, will be 
appreciated. The information will be incorporated into revised editions. 
Acknowledgment is made to the National Geographic Society for 
its suggestions, both as to editorial policy and the interesting details 
concerning Paris and its environs. 

Acknowledgment is made to Underwood & Underwood and Pub- 
lishers' Photo Service for photographs contained in this guidebook, 
which photographs are copyrighted. 



Nine 



Introduction 




ARTIAL music, sound of trumpets, long files of bearded 
men in horizon blue, an eager Gallic laugh, an imperious 
gesture, a group of mam'selles dressed in the latest 
fashion, a polite bow, a glimpse of stately buildings, 
green trees, wide avenues, and boulevards, the tricolor 
of blue, white, and red — the spirit of Freedom — this is 
part of France, and what is France is Paris. 
Fleecy clouds float overhead in a sea of blue, cathedral bells 
ring their noonday call of Angelus, and red-cheeked gamins in smocks 
abandon their games and run to their homes in response to another 
call of porridge and milk. A French marine and a sailor stroll 
along the street. They salute an American Naval officer. On the 
corner by the church, an old flower woman sells a nosegay of roses to a 
shop girl whose shabby dress shows that she can ill afford the price. The 
basket is still nearly filled with flowers— the sweet scent of them drifts 
through the air. The warm sun shines down on the city; waves of heat 
rise from the pavem.ent, except where the trees cast cooling shadows on 



Eleven 



the asphalt. In the Latm Quarter the artist lays his palette aside, 
glances at the canvas heavy with oil paints, slips on his coat, and walks 
with his neighbor to the corner cafe for a chat over a glass of red wine. 
The day wears on; the avenues and boulevards become crowded 
with the afternoon parade of carriages and automobiles. A few brief 
hours more, and the sun descends behind a hill of crimson clouds beyond 
the Seine. Twilight comes; then night, and the theaters open. All 
just a bit of life in Paris. 

"You who have ever been to Paris, know; 
And you who have not been to Paris — go!" 

— RusMn. 



Twelve 



PARIS 




EARLY DAYS IN PARIS 

AKIS is first mentioned in 
literature in the Commen- 
taries of Caesar, one of 
whose generals, Labienus, 
occupied a collection of 
mud huts on an island of 
the Seine. The settle- 
ment composed the resi- 
dence of Parish, one of the numerous 
Gallic tribes conquered by the Romans. 
St. Denis introduced Christianity into 
Paris, then known as Lutetia, in the third 
century. In 506, Clovis, after he had 
defeated the Germans at Soissons, made 
the city the capital of his kingdom. 

Charlemagne visited Paris several 
times during the course of his reign, and 
finally, in the tenth century, Hugh Capet 
made this city the capital of all France. 
Paris was divided into three parts during 
the Middle Ages — the Latin Quarter on 
the left bank of the Seine, the Ville on the 
right bank, and La Cite on the islands. 

English troops occupied Paris during 
the reigns of Henry V and Henry VI, 




Municipal progress was halted during the 
wars of the last of the Valois when the 
city was frequently besieged by invading 
armies. 

Henry of Navarre, crowned King of 
France in 1589, expended large sums in 
improving Paris, the work being continued 
during the minority of his son, Louis XIII, 
and also during the reign of Louis XIV. 

More improvements were carried out, 
and Paris continued to grow under the 
various rulers until the French Revolution 
caused a temporary reaction. The first 
Napoleon resumed the work of improving 
Paris, decorating the capital with art 
treasures brought from various other 
European countries during the Napoleonic 
wars. 

Paris again fell into disrepair after the 
defeat of Napoleon, continuing so until 
Louis Phillipe began to beautify the city 
again. It was during Louis Phillipe's 
reign that many of the fortifications 
around Paris were built or strengthened. 

The French capital was still a city of 
narrow tortuous streets and rickety houses 

Thirteen 



PARIS 




when Napoleon III ascended the throne. 
Under his achninistration many public 
were erected, and, when the 



buildings 



international exhibition was held in 1 897, 
Paris was considered the most beautiful 
city in Europe. 

The siege of Paris by the Germans in 
1870-71 caused some damage to the city, 
but the greater injury was wrought by the 
vandalism of the Communards, or revolu- 
tionists of the period. 

Pillage, bloodshed, and wanton de- 
struction followed the revolution. In 
May, 1871, when the Government troops 
of France began their advance into Paris, 
the Communards set fire to the city. 
Fortunately the blaze was checked before 
it had caused serious damage. 

Within two years Paris was back to 
normal, and life was as gay as in the 
flourishing days before the Revolution. 
During the World War, Paris was bombed 
by the German airplanes and shelled by 
long-distance guns; but the total damage 
was comparatively small. The Germans 
were halted by the French only a few 
miles from Paris in the first battle of the 
Marne, and in the second battle of the 
Marne, by the Americans and French. 



Fourteen 



PARIS 




THE FRENCH REVOLUTION 

N THE morning of July 14, 
1789, during the reign 
of Louis XVI and his 
queen, Marie Antoinette, 
a rumor spread through 
Paris to the effect that 
royalist regiments were 
marching on the city to 
prevent a threatened revolt of the people. 
Later another rumor spread. The citizens 
were told that the Bastille, state prison of 
Paris, was about to bombard the Faubourg 
St. Antoine, a crowded residence district 
near by. 

The populace — men and women — flew 
to arms and marched on the Bastille 
which had become a hated symbol of royal 
oppression, as it had been used for years 
as a place of imprisonment for those who 
displeased the king. The Bastille fell. 
The governor, Delauney, and seven of his 
guards were killed. The prisoners were 
liberated. They were carried through the 
streets of Paris and wildly acclaimed as 
victims of the tyranny of kings. After- 
wards the Bastille was torn down. Itg 





rusty key was sent to George Washington 
by the contemporary American Minister 
to France, Thomas Paine, and is now at 
Mount Vernon. Very little remains of the 
Bastille to-day; only a few scattered stones 

Fifteen 



PARIS 



'--3-v''".;'"""":' -V ■'^' 






!^-^-. 











Place de la Concorde 

ill the pavement outline the spot where the 
towers stood in the clays of the revolution. 
In the center of the Place de la Bastille 
stands the Colonne de Juillet, a tall shaft 
erected in honor of the victims of the 
revolt of Jul}", 1830. The bronze column, 
over 150 feet high, is crowned by a winged 

Sixteen 



figure representing the ''Genius of Lib- 
erty" in gilt bronze. 

The storming of the Bastille by the 
Paris mob marked the beginning of the 
French Revolution, which brought a reign 
of terror to France. It was not until 
several years later that comparative tran- 
quillity was to come to France through the 
formation of the Directoire, the govern- 
ment established by the Constitution of 
the year 1795. The Directoire was soon to 
be overthro^vn by Napoleon, who led the 
French nation through additional years of 
strife, until the battle of Waterloo, when 
the Bonaparte power was broken by the 
allied armies of Europe. 

"MADAME GUILLOTINE" 

THE Rue Royale in 
Paris is the Place de la 
Concorde, a famous his- 
torical spot of the French 
capital. It was here in 
1793, on the south side 
of the square where a 
bronze fountain now 
Louis XVI was guillo- 
of the same year 



that 
In October 



PARIS 



Marie Antoinette met a similar death in 
the same place. 

During the reign of terror a scaffold 
erected in the Place de la Concorde was 
used by the revolutionists for the execu- 
tion of some 3,000 persons. During this 
period the fish-wives of Paris would 
gather around the guillotine, their knit- 
ting needles clicking time to the thud of 
the heads as they dropped in the bloody 
basket beside the knife, while the tum- 
brils, or prison carts, rattled through the 
streets bringing more of the condemned 
to the place of execution. 

"Madame Guillotine," as the ma- 
chine was called by the people of Paris, 
was invented by Joseph Ignace Guillotin, 
a physician. It is said that the inventor 
himself ultimately died beneath the knife 
of his own invention. 

The Place de la Concorde was first 
called the Place Louis XV, and later the 
Place de la Revolution, but its present 
name comes from the signing of the peace 
treaty at Aix la Chapelle in 1748, by 
which the War of the Austrian Succes- 
sion was ended. Eight figures repre- 
senting:; cities of France stand in the 





Champs Elysees 

square. In the center is an obelisk 
brought from Egypt, where for centuries 
it guarded the gateway to the temple of 
Luxor. The Seine, touching the south 
side of the Square, is crossed at this 
point by the Pont de la Concorde. 

Seventeen 



PARIS 



If 




Lafayette Statue 

The Champs Elysees, the Fifth Avenue 
of Paris, runs west from the Phace de la 
Concorde. Many garden cafes are located 
on the Avenue, and also the Palais 
de I'Elysee, residence of the President of 

Eighteen 




France. The palace, built in 1718, was 
restored during the reign of Napoleon. 
The Grand Palais and the Petit Palais, 
now two fine-arts galleries, also stand on 
the Champs Elysees. 

PLACE DU CARROUSEL 

LACE du Carrousel, which 
derives its name from 
an equestrian ball given 
there by Louis XVI in 
1662, is an open space 
between the Old Louvre 
and the Arc de Triomphe 
du Carrousel. It was 
traversed until the middle of the last 
century by a maze of narrow streets. 
Removal of the houses was begun by Loids 
Phillipe. The improvements continued 
under Napoleon III, who caused a space 
to be cleared for the New Louvre. 

A statue of Lafayette, designed by 
Paul Bar<"lett, the American sculptor, 
and presented to France by the school 
children of the United States, stands in 
the square. Near the statue is an arch 
similar to that of Severus in Rome, but 




PARIS 



raised in memory of Napoleon. The 
horses of St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice, 
which stood on the arch at one time, have 
since been returned to Venice. The square 
is inclosed on the north and south sides 
by wings connecting the Palace of the 
Tuileries with the Louvre. 

The gardens of the Tuileries adjoin 
the Place de la Concorde on the east. It 
was here that Catherine de Medici, widow 
of Henry II, built the royal palace of 
the Tuileries, last refuge of Louis XVI 
and his family before their do^^^lfall. 
Napoleon lived in the Tuileries during 
a portion of his career. The palace was 
almost entirely demolished by the Com- 
munards in 1871 during the Revolution 
preliminary to the establishment of the 
Third Republic. 

Another famous square is the Place 
Vendome, south on the Rue de la Paix, 
or the Street of Peace. The principal 
feature of the Place Vendome is the 
Vendome Column, 140 feet high, sur- 
mounted by a statue of Napoleon in a 
Roman toga. The statue was erected in 
1806 in commemoration of victories over 
the Prussians during the previous year. 




o\ 




Place Vendome 

It was copied from the Trajan Column 
in Rome. The base, made from cannon 
captured from the Austrians, is decorated 
with bas-reliefs illustrating scenes of the 
campaign in which Napoleon defeated the 
armies of Austria. 

Nineteen 



PARIS 



A TREASURE HOUSE 






IRST the home of kings, 
and then a repository for 
some of the most famous 
art treasures in the world, 
the Pah^ce of the Louvre, 
in Paris, is cele})rated not 
only for the beauty of its 
architecture, but for its 
precious collections of pamtmgs, draw- 
ings, and antiffues. 

The Louvre was begun by Phillipe 
Augustus, King of France, in the thir- 
teenth century, and the work of construc- 
tion was continued ])y Charles V, Francis 
I, Louis XVI, and other rulers. Na- 
poleon I expended over 36 m.illion francs 
on the palace which occupies three times 
as much space as the Vatican. The task 
was completed by Napoleon III, who 
joined the Palace of the Louvre and the 
Tuileries. 

The kings of France have fallen, and 
the Louvre is no longer an abode of roy- 
alty; but it contains something infinitely 
more precious — from the Am.erican pomt 
of view — in treasures of art from the four 

Twenty 





The Louvre 

corners of the world. All civilization, 
from ancient to modern, is represented in 
the galleries by thousands of paintings, 
sculptures, potteries, and drawings. 

The Louvre houses the largest collec- 
tion of paintings m the world, including 



PARIS 



many masterpieces. Among the most 
famous are Leonarde da Vinci's "Mona 
Lisa," which disappeared in 1911 and 
was returned later; "Madonna of the 
Rocks," and "Madonna, Infant Christ 
with St. Anne;" several Titians, including 
"Titian and His Mistress," "The Entomb- 
ment," "The Man with the Glove," and 
the "Rest on the Flight into Egypt." 
Correggio is represented in the Louvre by 
"The Betrothal of St. Catherine" and 
"Jupiter and Antiope." Raphael; the 
Flemish painters, Rubens and Van Dyck; 
and the Dutch masters, Rembrandt and 
Ruysdael, are also represented in the gal- 
lery. "The Angelus," by Millet, and the 
notable battle paintings by Meissonier are 
hung in the Louvre. The principal works 
of sculpture are the "Venus of Milo" and 
the "Victory of Samothrace." 

The Hotel de Ville is some distance 
west of the Louvre, on the Rue de Rivoli, 
It is the city hall of Paris, standing on the 
site of the first Hotel de A^ille, which was 
blown up by the Communards in 1871. 
The new building is a copy of the old, 
with a few changes, and its most distinc- 
tive features are the hundreds of statues. 





Hotel de ViUe 

placed in the pavilions and m niches on 
the several floors. 

Louis XVI was tried by the Revolu- 
tionary Tribunal in the old Hotel de Ville. 
Robespierre, during his brief exercise of 

Twenty-One 



PARIS 




power, made it the scene of his reign of 
terror. Rohespierre attempted suicide by 
shooting himself in the jaw after his fall 
from grace; but he was captured, taken 

Tvjenty- Tivo 




to the guillotine, and met the death he 
had dealt out to Danton, Hebert, and 
other Revolutionarv leaders. 

THE BELFRY TOWER 

NE of the most famous bel- 
fry towers on the conti- 
nent of Europe rises 
above the Cathedral of 
Notre Dame, whose 
stained-glass windows 
and majestic architec- 
ture, conceived and exe- 
cuted in medieval times, are a boast of 
modern Paris. 

The view from the belfry or south 
tower, and its companion, the north tower, 
is one of the finest in the city; and the 
traveler should consider his visit in Paris 
as being incomplete until he has ascended 
the windmg stone steps and viewed in 
this fashion the capital of France. 

In the belfry tower hangs the great 
Bourdon-de-ISTotre-Dame, the bell of Notre 
Dame, whose mass of metal has thundered 
forth the golden news of victory by France 
on land and sea for hundreds of years. 



PARIS 



The bell, weighing nearly 29,000 
pounds, is one of the largest in the 
world — and the sweetness of its tone is a 
''wondrous thing to hear." The clapper, 
weighing nearly half a ton, only consents 
to touch the inner surface of the bell when 
eight strong men ]iut their weight against 
it; and as the heavy tongue strikes the 
bell and a volume of sound rises and beats 
against the ears of the ringers, the scowl- 
ing gargoyles along the balustrades of the 
tower seem almost to prick up their 
pointed stone ears in silent approval of 
the music. The birds which nest around 
the cathedral have never become accus- 
tomed to the sound and, when the clapper 
is sent into action, the beat of their wings 
as they skim startled through the air adds 
a throbbing minor note to the music of the 
bell. 

The Cathedral of Notre Dame, of 
course, has its history. Several churches 
have stood on the same spot. When one 
was destroyed, another rose in its place, 
much as the fabled phoenix appeared 
from the ashes of a former self. 

During the days of Roman rulership 
the cathedral ground was the site of a 





temple of Jupiter. It later held the 
foundations of two churches, dedicated to 
the Virgin and St. Stephen, respectively. 
The first stone of the present cathedral 

Twenty- Three 



PARIS 




Interior of Notre Dame 

was laid by Pope Alexander III, in 11G3, 
the work of construction continuing until 
the thirteenth century. 

Henry IV assisted at the mass that was 
to make him the ruler of Paris^ and Mary, 

Twenty-Four 




Queen of Scots, was married to the dau- 
phin in the cathedral. Later the edifice 
was utilized as a Temple of Reason by the 
red-capped revolutionists. A few years 
later Napoleon was crowned Emperor of 
France in Notre Dame and the walls of 
the cathedral saw the diadem placed on 
the head of Josephine as Napoleon pro- 
claimed her the Empress of his dominions. 

The facade of Notre Dame is divided 
by buttresses into three sections, three 
stories high, and flanked by two square 
towers. The triple portal is surmounted 
by the Gallery of the Kings of Judah, 
where the rose window, over 30 feet in 
diameter, is located. An open gallery 
with slender columns and pointed arches 
forms the third story. 

The towers, over 220 feet in height, 
were to have been surmounted by lofty 
spires, but these have never been added. 
The north and south portals were begun 
under the direction of Jean de Chelles in 
1257. The steeple, 147 feet high, was 
reconstructed in 1859. The ball sup- 
porting the cross is said to contain relics 
of the true cross and fragments of tlie 
crown of thorns which encircled the 



PARIS 



lacerated head of Christ when he died on 
Mount Calvary. 

The sanctuary and the choir stalls are 
separated from the other aisles by ex- 
quisitely carved railings. Rich Gothic 
sculptures stand over the portals. The 
carving over the central entrance, repre- 
senting the "Last Judgment," is compar- 
able to the "Last Judgment" on the 
Madeleine. In the cathedral there are 37 
chapels containing the tombs of many 
famous prelates of Paris. 

Another notable church in Paris is the 
Madeleine, or Church of St. Mary Magdalen, 
built in the style of a Roman temple. 
The church stands in the Place de la 
Madeleine, adjoining the Boulevard des 
Capucines. This edifice, begun in the 
reign of Louis XV, was opened for Roman 
Catholic services in 1842. Destitute of 
windows, the interior forms one vast 
nave with cupolas through which the 
light streams to illuminate the paintings 
on walls and altars. The music at the 
Madeleine is exceptionally delightful. 
Frequently there is a picturesque flower 
market outside the Madeleine and the 
fragrant odor of freshly cut roses and 





The Madeleine 

violets turns the church into a kind of 
Parisian paradise. 

A third place of worship in Paris es- 
pecially worthy of notice is the Sainte 

Twenty-Five 



PARIS 




I ypical French Road near Chartres 

Chapelle, a small church of Gothic de- 
sign. This structure was built by the 
devout Louis IX as a resting place for the 
sacred relics brought back from the Cru- 
sades in 1239. The relics, incidentally, 

Tirenty-Six 




are now in the Cathedral of Notre Dame. 
The Mass of the Holy Ghost is celebrated 
once a year in this chm^ch. Sainte Cha- 
pelle, a part of the Palace of Justice, 
stands on the ground occupied by an im- 
perial residence during the Roman rule. 
The old Conciergerie of the palace, a prison 
in which Marie Antoinette and Robes- 
pierre were imprisoned, still remains. 
The Conciergerie was partially burned 
during the Revolution, but the palace has 
been restored and partly rebuilt. 

Of the 79 Catholic churches in Paris, 
the address of the one most convenient to 
the visitor may be obtained from the 
directory. The principal Protestant 
churches are as follows: L'Oratoire, 145 
Saint Honore; Le Foyer de L'Ame, 7 R. 
Daval; Eglise de Pentemont, 106 R. de 
Crenelle; Eglise du Saint Esprit, 5 R. 
Roquepine; Temple de Passy, 49 R. Cor- 
tambert; Temple des BatignoUes, 46 Bd. 
des BatignoUes; Temple de I'Etoile, 54 
Av. de la Grande-Armee ; Temple de 
Neuilly, 8 Bd. Inkerman; American 
Church, all denominations, 21 R. de Berri; 
American Church of the Holy Trinity, 25 
Av. George V. 



PARIS 




THE TOMB OF NAPOLEON 

NDER _ the Dome of the 
Invalides is the tomb of 
Napoleon, in the form of 
a circular crypt, whose 
granite walls are in- 
scribed with marble re- 
liefs representing the 
principal victories of the 
emperor. A design is laid in the mosaic 
pavement of the crypt to form a laurel 
wreath, bearing the names of various 
battles in which the armies of Napoleon 
participated. 

In the middle of the pavement rises 
the red porphyry sarcophagus carved 
from a single mass of stone weighing 
nearly 70 tons. In the sarcophagus rests 
Napoleon's body, brought to Paris from 
St. Helena twenty years after his death, 
in response to his wish: "I desire that my 
ashes repose on the banks of the Seine in 
the midst of the French people, whom I 
have loved so weU." 

The crypt also contains the sarcopha- 
gus of the faithful Durco, killed at Baut- 
zen in 1813; and that of Bertrand, thcj 





Montmartre from Tower of Notre Dame 

French officer who shared Napoleon's 
captivity during his dreary years of exile. 
In near-by chapels are the remains of 

Tvjenty-Seven 



PARIS 



Napoleon's two brothers, and the heart 
of Jerome's second vnie, Catherine. 

The Dome des Invahdes is an auxiUary 
part of the entire Hotel des Invalides, 
"wliich stands on the Boulevard des Inva- 
lides, near the heights of Montmartre. 
The great Soldiers' Home was founded by 
Louis XIV in 1671 and restored under 
Napoleon I and Napoleon III. The 
Dome consists of a chapel sm"mounted by 
a round tower which supports the gilt 
dome — the top of which is over 300 feet 
from the ground. The grounds of the In- 
valides include many courts and gardens 
containing numerous statues. Another 
interesting feature of the institution is the 
museum containing specimens of ancient 
and modern weapons and armor. 

The Palais Bom'bon, built as a palace 
for the Ducliess of Bourbon in 1722 — and 
now the meeting place of the Chamber of 
Deputies — is a short distance north of the 
Hotel des Invalides. The deputies are 
elected directly by the people and serve 
four years at an annual salary of $1,800 
a year. It was here that President Wilson 
made his historic adchess outlining the 
plan for the League of Nations. 

Tiventy-Eight 





THE UNKNOWN DEAD 

OT far from the Fontaine 
Notre Dame, in the He de 
la Cite, crouches a small 
queer building whose very 
appearance is forbidding, 
ugly, and gloom y — in 
vivid contrast with the 
glorious atmosphere of the 
cathedral. It is the Paris morgue, where 
the bodies of the unknown dead who have 
perished in the river, or met their death in 
other ways, are held for possible identifi- 
cation, but it is not open to the public. 

The bodies are frozen, then placed on 
marble slabs in the exposition room, 
which is kept at a temperature of below 
freezing. The bodies are kept in this con- 
dition, if necessar}", for two or three 
months and are then biu'ied in one of the 
Paris cemeteries. Hundreds of bodies 
are brought to the morgue every year, 
many of them being identified by rela- 
tives or friends; although the majority 
are buried, as they died, nameless. 

Paris contains 14 cemeteries, the most 
prominent being the Cemetery of Pere- 



PARIS 



Lachaise, where rest the remains of 
Balzac, Mohere, Racine, Chopin, Rossini, 
Belhni, Marshal Ney, and other men of 
fame. 

The Picpus Cemetery, in the south- 
eastern part of the city, contains the re- 
mains of Lafayette. 

In the Montmartro Cemetery are the 
graves of Heine, Gautier, Murger, and 
Vernet. According to one legend, the 
Montmartre Hill received its name from 
the martyrdom of St. Denis, the first 
Bishop of Paris, who was executed there. 
Another legend relates that in early times 
the hill was the site of a Roman temple 
dedicated to Mars, and that "Mont- 
martre" is derived from "Mount of Mars." 

Nearly six million persons, it is said, 
are buried in the catacombs which extend 
under the greater part of Paris on the left 
bank of the Seine. The catacombs were 
originally subterranean quarries, operated 
as far back as the time of the Roman 
occupation. About 1774, the bodies from 
the Cemetery of the Innocents and other 
burial grounds were transferred to the 
quarries by order of the Government. 
The galleries and tunnels of the cata- 




combs are supposed to be completely 
lined with human skeletons. 

Visitors are admitted to the cata- 
combs, generally twice a month. Each 
must carry a torch or candle purchased at 
the entrance and should also wear a 
heavy coat and overshoes. The entrance 
is in the Place Denfert-Rochereau and 
the principal exit is at No. 92 Rue 
Dareau. Permission to visit the cata- 
combs must be obtained from the Prefet 
de Police or the Prefet de la Seine. Trips 
may also be taken through the labyrinth 
of sewers extending under the city — the 
sewers made famous by Hugo. 

OLD BRIDGES AND NEW 

HE winding Seine is trav- 
ersed in Paris by 27 
bridges, the most inter- 
esting perhaps being the 
Pont Alexandre III, and 
the oldest being the Pont 
Neuf , or "New Bridge " — - 
paradoxical as that term 
may seem. The Pont Neuf, more than 500 
years old, has been partially destroyed and 

Twenty-Nine 



n 





PARIS 




restored again and again since it was first 
completed in the fifteenth century. It 
connects the upper point of He de la Cite 
Anth both sides of the Seine, affording an 
excellent view of the Louvre. An eques- 

Thirly 



i 




trian statue of Henry IV stands on the 
bridge. 

Nicholas II, the late Czar of Russia, 
laid the cornerstone of the Pont Alexandre 
III, which was built for the Exposition 
of 1900 and named in honor of Alexandre 
III, who was instrumental in bringing 
about an alliance between France and 
Russia. 

Another famous bridge of Paris is the 
Pont des Arts, which crosses the Seine 
near the Quartier St. Germain. This 
bridge, erected during the early part of 
the last century, is named after the 
"Palace of Arts,'' now the Louvre. A 
quay, reaching from the Pont des Arts 
to the Pont Royal, furnishes a mooring 
place for boats which sail to Paris from 
the sea. The notorious Tour de Neale, 
which once stood on the other side of the 
bridge, is said by tradition to have been 
the scene of many cold-blooded murders 
during the life of Margaret of Burgundy, 
wife of Louis IX. 

Among other well-known bridges in 
Paris are the Ponts d'AusterUtz, de 
Carrousel, National, de la Concorde, des 
Invalides, Marabeau, and Royal. 



PARIS 




AN ARCH OF TRIUMPH 

NE of the largest triumphal 
arches in the world — 
and without doubt the 
most famous — stands in 
the Place de I'Etoile, 
from which 12 wide ave- 
nues radiate, much as do 
the points of a star or 
the spokes of a wheel. The Arc de 
Triomphe de I'Etoile, begun by Napoleon 
in 1806 to commemorate his victories, 
was completed by Louis Phillipe in 1836 
at a cost of nearly two million dollars. 

The arch is 164 feet high and 147 
feet wide, measuring 95 feet under the 
keystone of the great archway. Four 
sculptural groups rise from the four 
square pillars. On the roof of the arch 
are panels bearing the names of the 
principal victories under the First Re- 
public and the Empire. The names of 
generals taking part in the battles are 
also inscribed on the arch. 

A spiral stairway ascends to the plat- 
form at the top of the arch, from which 
the visitor has a magnificent view of the. 




Arc de Triomphe 

Champs Elysees, the Avenue de la Grande 
Armee, the towers of Notre Dame, the 
Seine, and the heights of Montmartre. 
The most opportune time to view the 
city from the arch is toward evening on 
a pleasant day in summer, when the sun 

Thirty-One 



PARIS 




Bois de Boulogne 

is going down, and the twilight shadows 
are just beginning to lay a soft mantle 
of black over the warm earth. Then 

TMrty-Tvn 




all the romance and mystery of Paris 
seem to be alive, and the imagina- 
tion weaves fantastic stories which are 
always in perfect harmony with the 
spirit of the capital of France at the 
twilight hour. 

From this arch of triumph can be seen, 
too, the Bois de Boulogne, the great 
park of Paris, an extensive garden of 
over two thousand acres, embracing two 
lakes, Superieur and Inferieur, The Bois 
de Boulogne also contains the race 
course of Longchamps, where thorough- 
bred horses of France and other Euro- 
pean countries are raced in the spring, 
summer, and fall months, the principal 
races taking place in April, May, and 
September. 

The Zoo, Le Jardin d'Acclimatation, is 
another attraction of the Bois de Bou- 
logne — and there are also numerous 
open air restaurants, the Pre Catelan 
being one of the more popular. The 
suburbs of St. Cloud, Passy, and Auteuil 
are included in the boundaries of 
the park. Passy and Auteuil are popu- 
lar residential sections of the wealthy 
Parisians. 



PARIS 




THE LATIN QUARTER 

N THE left bank of the 
Seine is one of the most 
interesting sections of 
Paris. It is the oldest 
part of the city and is 
known as the Latin Quar- 
ter. Here students from 
all over the world con- 
gregate to study and to observe the 
quaint customs of its Bohemian life. It 
is filled with disciples of all the arts — 
both masters and students. 

In the Latin Quarter the travelers may 
become acquainted with the French tem- 
perament more easily than in other sec- 
tions of Paris, for an unusually delightful 
spirit of camaraderie prevails here — and 
the Bohemian, provided he sees in the 
visitor a kindred spirit, is very apt to 
take him to his heart. 

Not only do dilettantes, with the spirit 
of Bohemia deeply entrenched in their 
natiu-es, make the Latin Quarter their 
place of residence, but learned societies 
make their headquarters here — and many 
naval and army officers, artists, archi- 





Cascade in the Bois du Boulogne 

tects, civil engineers, surgeons, and other 
professional men take pride in the fact 
that they received their education in the 
"Quartier Latin." 

Thirty- Three 



PARIS 




Latin Quarter 

The Frenchman in the Latin Quarter, 
as indeed in other parts of Paris and of 
France, though not so effusive about his 

Thirtij-Four 




personal, domestic, and spiritual affairs, 
opens the floodgates of conversation on 
topics of literary, philosophical, and artis- 
tic interests. 

And the average Frenchman is more 
temperamental usually than the most 
temperamental American or Englislnnan. 
He does not hesitate to make a public 
demonstration of his emotions — which he 
expresses by means of kisses, tears, em- 
braces, and battalions of vivid words. 

Politeness is a national characteristic 
of the French; and, too, his intellectual 
alertness is remarkable. This trait has 
caused intense hatreds between parties 
and individuals in France, that find full 
expression during peace times; but, when 
France is at war, the intense patriotism 
of her people keeps the nation together. 
In the matter of patriotism the French 
and American people are alike, as indeed 
they are alike in many other respects. 
These similarities have done a great deal 
to aid the respective Governments in 
building up a lasting friendship between 
France and the United States. 

The French are remarkably straight- 
forward people. This characteristic dis- 



PARIS 



plays itseK in their arts, which, sometimes 
go to extremes, although they do not re 
gard themselves as being immoral, but 
'^ simply frank." There was never a more 
good-natured, more patient people; but at 
the same time they are brave to the ex- 
tremes of heroism, as the German armies 
learned in the years 1914-1918. 

But in discussing the temperament of 
the French, we are getting away from our 
subject, which is the Latin Quarter, and 
back to the Quartier we must go if we are 
ever to conclude our tour of Paris. 

Leaving City Island (He de la Cite), 
and going to the south side of the Seine by 
way of Pont St. Michel, the visitor finds 
himself in the Latin Quarter. A short 
walk down the Boulevard St. Michel 
brings one to the Cluny Museum, one of 
the most interesting in all France. The 
building, erected in the fifteenth century 
by the Benedictine abbots of Cluny, is 
built on the Gothic style of architecture. 
It stands on the site of an ancient Roman 
palace, the Thermes (or baths) of which 
are still standing. The museum collec- 
tion includes specimens of medieval art 




Paris Seen from the Louvre 

and industry, enamels, j^rints, stained 
glass, and pottery. 

Just south of the museum is the Sor- 
bonne — a famous institution of learning 
founded in 1253 by Robert de Sorbon, the 

Thirty-Five 



PARIS 




Palais de Luxembourg 

confessor of Louis IX. The Sorbonne, 
reconstructed by Cardinal Richelieu in 
the seventeenth century, was entirely 

Thirty-Six 



rebuilt again between 1885 and 1900, vnth 
the exception of the old church which 
now serves as the tomb of Richelieu. 

The University of Paris, near the 
Louvre on the left bank of the Seine, com- 
prises five academies — letters, sciences, 
arts, political economics, and the French 
Academy. It is the ambition of every 
French A\Titer to belong to L'Academie 
Fran^aise, for then he is recognized as one 
of the foremost devotees of the art of 
belles-lettres. The French Academy has 
only 40 living members — the ''Forty 
Immortals" they are called. 

A GALLERY OF ART 

HE finest paintings of con- 
temporaiy French artists 
are on exhibition in the 
Museum of Luxembourg, 
a part of the Palace of the 
same name on the Boule- 
vard Palais du Luxem- 
bourg, the main thor- 
oughfare of the Latin Quarter, 

Pictures on exhibition in the Museum 
are usually sent to the Louvre, or to 



E 


= 



PARIS 



galleries in provincial cities, a. few years 
after the death of the artists who paint 
them. Many of the paintings in the 
Museum are as excellent as those in the 
Louvre, but can not be transferred while 
their creators are living. The Museum 
also houses a collection of sculptures, 
among them some by St. Gaudens, whose 
statue of Lincoln and other portrayals of 
American life brought him into popular 
favor in the United States. 

The Palace proper was a residence of 
royalty during many reigns and served as a 
prison during the French Revolution. It 
is now the Senate building of the Republic. 

The Petit Luxembourg on the Rue cle 
Vaugirard was transferred to the ownier- 
ship of Cardinal Richelieu in 1626. It is 
now the residence of the President of the 
Senate. The former cloister is used as a 
winter garden. Americans desiring to 
visit the Palace must make application 
through the American Ambassador. 

A few blocks east of the Palace of 
Luxembourg stands the Pantheon, for- 
merly the Catholic Church Ste. Genevieve, 
but now a mausoleum, containing the 
tombs of Victor Hugo, Voltaire, Rousseau, 





The Pantheon 

and other great sons of France. Ste. 
Genevieve, incidentaUy, is the patron 
saint of Paris. She was buried on the 
site of the Pantheon about 1,400 years 
ago. In front of the Pantheon sits the 
bronze statue "The Thinker," by Rodin. 

Thirty-Seven 




ThiHy-Eight 



PARIS 



Near by is the new Church of Ste. Gene- 
vieve, The Jardin des Plantes, a com- 
bined zoological and botanical garden, 
is located east of the Pantheon. 

THE EIFFEL TOWER 




HE Eiffel Tower, highest 
structure in the world, 
standing in the Champ de 
Mars, and a gathering 
place for tourists of all 
nations, is probably the 
best knoMTi place of in- 
terest in the capital of 
France. The Tower is 984 feet high, 
more than 200 feet taller than the Wool- 
worth Building in New York City, nearly 
twice as high as the Washington Monu- 
ment, and more than double the height 
of the Great Pyramid of Egypt. Over a 
million dollars was expended in its con- 
struction, which was completed in 1889. 
It is named for its designer, Gustav Eiffel. 
The admission fees almost paid for the 
tower during the first year after it was 
built and the Government has cleared an 





Temple of Love, Versailles 

enormous amount of money in fees from 
later visitors to the Tower. 

During the war the Eiffel Tower was 
used as a wireless and military observa- 
tion station, rendering invaluable service 

Thirty-Nine 



PARIS 



(luring the Gorman air raids on tho French 
capital and its suburbs. 

One may either climb to the top of the 
Tower or ricle in an elevator, but must pay 
a fee at the half-way landing and at the 
tlmxl platform — very nearly at the peak 
of the structure. 

A FAMOUS CHATEAU 



ERSAILLES, formerly the 
residence of the kings of 
France, is famous not 
only because of the his- 
torical events that have 
taken place there, but for 
the siu"passing splendor 
of the Chateau or Palace 
The town, with a popula- 





and gardens 



tion of over 60,000, is located on a plateau 
smTounded by wooded hills. Versailles is 
crowded with historical associations. 
Those of most interest to visitors center 
about the Chateau and its grounds. 

Versailles was a hunting lodge during 
the reign of Louis XIII, and the Chateau 
was constructed by Louis XIV — le Roi- 
Soleil, the Sun King. The most cele- 
brated architects of the day were called, 

F»rty 



Interior of Palace of Versailles (Room in Which Peace 
was Signed by Germany) 

together to build the royal palace and 
eventually the elaborate gardens, and Ver- 
sailles became a 'perfect expression of 
beauty and royal splendor." Louis XV 
entrusted the architect Gabriel with the 
task of erecting new buildings, among 
them the theater. Later the revolution- 
ists drove Louis XVI from the Chateau. 
Napoleon attempted to restore the 
Palace, and I^ouis Phillipe, toward the 



PARIS 



middle of the last century, converted it 
into an historical museum, opening it to 
the public. Reliable guides for tours of 
the Chateau and the grounds are available. 
The most interesting room in the Chateau 
is the Galerie des Glaces — hall of mirrors — 
where William I was crowned Emperor of 
Germany-; January 18, 1871, and where 
the Germans signed the peace treaty on 
June 28, 1919. Thus the Hall of Mu^rors 
was the scene of the beginning and the 
end of the German Empire. 

THEATERS AND HOTELS 



|HE Theatre Franpais and 
the Opera are the two 
most popular theaters in 
Paris, the former being 
devoted to the presenta- 
tion of French comedies, 
while the latter is devoted 
to opera. 
The Opera House on Boulevard Hauss- 
mann was built in the years 1864-1874 
at a cost of over ten million dollars. It 
covers three acres of land. Materials 
for its construction were brought from 





Place de I'Opera 

Sweden, Finland, Italy, and Spain, as well 
from the Provinces of France. The 



Forty-One 



PARIS 



interior is rich in decorative paintings and 
sculptures, the number multiplied many 
fold — in one's vision — by a dazzling array 
of mirrors. The staircase is considered a 
masterpiece of decoration and grouping. 

The Theatre Franpais, adjacent to the 
Palais Royal Hotel, is a group of buildings 
designed under the dhection of Cardinal 
Richelieu, and later presented to Louis 
XIII. The theater was founded early in 
the seventeenth century, and its growth 
is connected with the name of Moliere— 
the ''Father of French Comedy." A few 
steps up the Rue de Richelieu, at the 
corner of the Rue Moliere, is the Fontaine 
Moliere, by Viconti, erected to the memory 
of the poet in 1844. 

Performances are given daily at all the 
theaters of Paris, excepting the Opera 
which holds but four performances a 
week — on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, 
and Saturdays. At the Theatre Fran^ais 
and the Odeon there is a special series of 
classical matinees on Thursdays. Among 
the principal theaters — besides the three 
previously mentioned — are the following: 
Opera-Comique,inPlaceBoieldieu; Odeon, 
in Place de I'Odeon; Theatre Sarah Bern- 

Forty-Two 




hardt, in Place du Chatelet; and Theatre 
Moliere, at 209 Faubourg St. Denis. 

"Now for hotels. The choice of hotels 
in Paris is naturally a f|uestion of taste 
and funds, inasmuch as prices vary in 
proportion to the service, from the small 
hotels to the hotels de luxe. 

Comfortable rooms can be obtained in 
the Rue du Faubourg-Montmartre, Fau- 
bourg Poissonniere, Rue Saint Honore, 
Rue de Richelieu, Rue de Seine, Rue Bona- 
parte, and other sections, for prices rang- 
ing from four to five francs a da}^. Rooms 
in the more expensive hotels, fitted with 
every "device of modern comfort and 
luxury," cost from 15 francs a day up. 
The districts most highly recommended 
are the boulevards from the Faubourg 
Poissonniere to the Madeline, the Avenue 
de rOpera, Rue de Rivoli, Faubourg Saint 
Honore, the Champs Elysees, and the 
neighboring thoroughfares. 

The American Y. M. C. A. is located 
at 12 Rue d'Aguesseau. The American 
Welfare Worker's Club, operated under 
the auspices of the Y. W. C. A. and the 
American Church, stands at 33 Rue 
Caumartin. 



PARIS 




MONEY AND POSTAGE 

IVE centimes in French 
money may be reckoned 
as equivalent to 1 cent 
American money, 50 cen- 
times to 10 cents, and 
1 franc to 20 cents. 

Copper, nickel, silver, 
and some gold coins are 
in circulation in Paris. The following 
table gives the approximate values of the 
coins in normal times : 

FRFNCH AMERICAN _ 

COPPER 
5 centimes (or sou) .... SO.Ol 
10 centimes (2 sous) ... .02 

NICKEL 

25 centimes 05 

10 centimes 02 

5 centimes .01 

SILVER 
50 centimes 10 

1 franc 20 

2 francs 39 

5 francs 96 

GOLD 

10 francs 1.92 

20 francs 3.81 

Forty-franc, 50-franc, and 100-franc 
coins are also issued. Since the rate of 





Belleau Wood 

exchange is constantly fluctuating, the 
visitors should ascertain the prevailing 
rate. 

Letters may be sent from France to 
the United States, or to other foreign 

Forty- Three 



PARIS 




Battlefield — Chateau Thierry 
countries, for 25 centimes; registered 
letters, 40 centimes; postal cards, of less 
than five words, 10 centimes; and those 
of more than five words, 15 centimes. 

Note. — Standard exchange is quoted. It is 
impossible to anticipate fluctuations. i 

Forty-Four 





ON THE BATTLEFIELDS 

N JUNE, 1918, when the 
German armies were 
sweeping toward Paris, 
crushing the allied armies 
in their paths, or hurling 
them back, even though 
the}^ fought so desper- 
ately and heroically, a 
handful of American marines and soldiers 
was rushed to the sector around Chateau 
Thierry. 

The vanguard of the ^ray-clad army 
came on until the point of the attacking 
wedge struck the American lines. A 
short, sharp struggle followed. The Ger- 
man forces started on their countermarch 
toward the Rhine ^and the rest is history. 
The Yankee soldiers and marines had 
saved the day, as did the French earlier 
in the war, when General Von Kluck came 
marching on Paris and was defeated by 
the ''taxicab army." 

And the Americans who visit France 
can hardly afford to leave without visit- 
ing the battlefields of Chateau Thierry, 
Belleau Wood, and other points in the 



PARIS 



desperate struggle which resulted in the 
defeat of the Prussian Guards and other 
shock troops of Germany at the hands 
of the Americans in the memorable sum- 
mer of 1918. 

By following the road along which the 
American troops were rushed to the front 
in motor trucks, a view of the ruined 
villages of Torcy, Vaux. and Rouresches 
is secured and, farther on, the town of 
Chateau Thierry. In the vicinity lie the 
immortal Belleau Wood, now called the 
"Woods of the Brigade of Marines." 

RHEIMS AND VERDUN 

IHE remains of the Rheims 
Cathedral, battered al- 
most to pieces by Ger- 
man shellfire, can be 
viewed on another trip 
from Paris. The most 
thrilling trip of all is to 
the scenes of the three 
greatest battles in either French or Amer- 
ican history — Verdun, St. Mihiel, and 
Meuse-Argonne. It was at Verdun that 
Marshal Retain voiced his defiance to 
the armies of Germany — ' ' They shall not 



^■9 


\\ 


V 





pass"^ — and, as all Americans know, St. 
Mihiel was the scene of the second Amer- 
ican offensive which resulted in the 
obliteration of the St. Mihiel salient by 
the First American Army, under General 
Pershing. On the Meuse, in the Argonne 
sector, over 900,000 American troops 
broke through supposedly impregnable 
positions and defeated the Germans in 
an incredibly desperate struggle lasting 
from September 26 to November 11, 1918. 

Forty-Five 



PARIS 




On Hill .304, m the Argonne Forest, 
stands a concrete tower — its walls ex- 
tending 30 feet into the earth^ — which 
served as headquarters for the German 
CroAvn Prince during the Battle of Ver- 
dun. The Cro^vn Prince, it is said, 

Forty-Six 




stayed at the very bottom of the tower 
and watched the battle through a peri- 
scope. 

And the traveler may also visit the 
American military cemeteries where rest 
the gallant men who gave up their lives 
on French soil during the World War. 

OTHER TRIPS 

ISITORS having time in 
which to make additional 
trips in and around Paris 
should see the palace of 
Fontainebleau, a day's 
ride from the capital, a 
place of very great inter- 
est from an historical 
standpoint. Fontainebleau is almost as 
prominent in the history of France as 
Versailles, although not connected with 
such recent events. The palace was the 
home of Louis XIII, Anne of Austria, 
Catherine de Medici, Marie Antoinette, 
Napoleon, and other rulers of France. 

The palace is rich in art treasures, fres- 
coes, paintings, and antique furnishings, 




PARIS 



and contains also some very rare Gobelin 
tapestries. The forest of Fontainebleau, 
sprawling about the chateau, has always 
been a favorite wandering ground for 
artists. Near by is the village of Barbi- 
zon, where lived some of the greatest 
French painters, including Millet, Corot, 
and Troy on. 

In addition to the trips about Paris 
already described, there are many addi- 



tional tours of interest, including visits to 
Sevres, near St, Cloud, where Sevres 
porcelam is manufactured; St. Denis — 
a short distance north of Paris — whose 
history is connected with that of Char- 
lemagne, Joan of Arc, and Napoleon; 
Pierrefonds, with its gloomy fortress; 
and Chantilly, famed chiefly for its race 
meets and its chateau filled with historic 
treasures. 



WASHIXGTOX ; GOVEKX.MENT PUIXTING OFFICE : 1920 



Forty-Seven 



PARIS 
MEMORANDUM 

These blank pages should be used to note items of interest to which you will want to refer 



Forty-Nine 



PARI S 
MEMORANDUM 



Fiffy 



PARIS 
MEMORANDUM 



Fifty -One 



CITY OF 

PARIS 



LEGEND 




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



029 906 193 



